Application of the ESHO-QA guidelines for determining the performance of the LCA superficial hyperthermia heating system

Application of the ESHO-QA guidelines for determining the performance of the LCA superficial hyperthermia heating system

Carrapiço-Seabra, Carolina (Erasmus MC)
De Lazzari, Mattia (Chalmers University of Technology)
Ameziane, Abdelali (Erasmus MC)
van Rhoon, G.C. (TU Delft RST/Applied Radiation & Isotopes; Erasmus MC)
Dobšícek Trefná, Hana (Chalmers University of Technology)
Curto, Sergio (Erasmus MC)

2023

Purpose: This study aimed to assess the quality of the lucite cone applicator (LCA), the standard applicator for superficial hyperthermia at the Erasmus MC Cancer Institute, using the most recent quality assurance guidelines, thus verifying their feasibility. Materials and methods: The assessment was conducted on each of the six LCAs available for clinical treatments. The temperature distribution was evaluated using an infrared camera across different layers of a fat-muscle mimicking phantom. The maximum temperature increase, thermal effective penetration depth (TEPD), and thermal effective field size (TEFS) were used as quality metrics. The experimental results were validated through comparison with simulated results, using a canonical phantom model and a realistic phantom model segmented from CT imaging. Results: A maximum temperature increase above 6 °C at 2 cm depth in the fat-muscle phantom for all the experiments was found. A mean negative difference between simulated and experimental data was of 1.3 °C when using the canonical phantom model. This value decreased to a mean negative difference of 0.4 °C when using the realistic model. Simulated and measured TEPD showed good agreement for both in silico scenarios, while discrepancies were present for TEFS. Conclusions: The LCAs passed all QA guidelines requirements for superficial hyperthermia delivery when used singularly or in an array configuration. A further characterization of parameters such as antenna efficiency and heat transfer coefficients would be beneficial for translating experimental results to simulated values. Implementing the QA guidelines was time-consuming and demanding, requiring careful preparation and correct setup of antenna elements.

Hyperthermia
LCA
quality assurance (QA)
superficial applicators

http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:c1db8865-e424-4a4a-b7db-a1cd77509590

https://doi.org/10.1080/02656736.2023.2272578

0265-6736

International Journal of Hyperthermia, 40 (1)

Institutional Repository

journal article

© 2023 Carolina Carrapiço-Seabra, Mattia De Lazzari, Abdelali Ameziane, G.C. van Rhoon, Hana Dobšícek Trefná, Sergio Curto